We are talking with Apple. This is certain. Any further news we have will be released to the media.

Handseeing was founded in 2005 and today employs about 200 developers in Chengdu and Suzhou offices. Their focus is online gaming, a nice fit for Game Center, Apple’s social gaming service in iOS 4.1 due later this year. Apple recently signed a renowed gaming editor to cherry-pick featured App Store games. The company was reportedly seeking an AAA-game developer to join their in-house iPhone team.

Several publications speculated that the Handseeing deal would bolster Apple’s presence in China, where the company plans to begin selling WiFi-enabled iPhones via China Unicom later this month, after a lot of back and forth with local regulators. I opined that the device might revitalize lackluster iPhone sales in the country.

Christian’s Opinion

In the larger scheme of things, these gaming strides point to an Apple-branded console at some point in the future. The company could deliver games via a redesigned Apple TV or an Apple-branded networked TV rather than a standalone console. Whichever the case, I’m convinced Apple has the gaming market in its crosshair. It’s a lucrative business with tens of millions in annual hardware sales and billions in software revenue. Apple’s digital download model with the App Store could be a natural fit for gamers and their strong iOS development community is a huge bonus.

As I opined before, snapping up a big games publisher like Electronic Arts (what, you didn’t hear the rumor?) would instantly boost Apple’s credibility in the gaming space. However, it’s not Apple’s style as they prefer snapping up smaller startups. To me, this rumored acquisition represents another step in the casual gaming direction.